Stalled fementation panic????

[Travis22690]

I am fermenting an extract kit of Belgian witbier and have run into a problem. When I first pitched the yeast it took 3 days til fermenting started. And I never got a big krausen on it like I had in past batches granted this is only my third batch. Only had about 1 inch of krausen at most. I have a controlled chest freezer at 20 degrees Celsius. I was using wyeast Belgian wit. 3 weeks later there is still a little bit of krausen left and gravity is at 1.020 and it's suppose to be between 1.010-1.012. My starting gravity was 1.045 right in the window they have given me. What should I do. Rack to secondary? Be calm and wait? All thoughts will be considered seems to be a bit too long of fermentation.


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[flars]

Take the fermentor out of your fermentation chamber and let it warm to ambient temperature.
Did you make a yeast starter based on the production date of your yeast for the estimated OG?

Moving your beer off the yeast cake will only exacerbate the problem.

 

[Travis22690]

I did not make a yeast starter


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[k1ngl1ves]

Wait a few days and check the gravity again. If it's still 1.020 then prep for bottling. Gravity measurements are just a guideline. Not a rule. If you're off a bit... no biggie.

Imo, it's ready to be bottled... and will probably be delicious in about a month.


I've had a couple of beers that never even bubbled or showed signs of doing anything but settling. The only thing that really changed was the gravity. I just continued the conditioning and bottling processes to see what would happen. Both turned out great.

You've got nothing to lose. See what happens...

 

[IXVolt]

Letting it warm up a bit can help, I also will gently (not splashing) carefully swirl the carboy to get any yeast that has laid down on the job back into suspension. You might have under pitched on your yeast.

 

[Travis22690]

Ok so I'll stir it up a bit if I raise temp how high should I go I deal with Celsius with my temp controller I'm at 20 now


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[aarong]

try 24C

 

[doornumber3]

No need for a starter with the wyeast if starting gravity was 1046. I agree check in a few days if the same bottle it and let sit.

 

[JBOGAN]

No need for a starter with the wyeast if starting gravity was 1046. I agree check in a few days if the same bottle it and let sit.

The OP would need a close to 162 yeast cells for the beer,so not needing a starter is very wrong.We have no idea of the production date so viability could have been shorter also.Get or make a stir plate or a flask and even a 1 gallon jug to produce a healthy starter.A healthy pitch of yeast can make all the difference.

 

[garcia]

Why would you not make a yeast starter? Takes 15 mins and a couple dollars of DME and is a big part of something you will invest 2-3 months to.

 

[Painter]

I have gotten stuck fermentation going in the past by swirling my fermenter, but I have not had a stuck fermentation since I began to make starters.